Defensive improvement tough to gauge for Scarlet Knights

7:16 PM,
Dec. 28, 2013

Written by

Ryan Dunleavy
| @rydunleavy

There was only one direction in which the stock of a Rutgers football defense on the verge of setting a school record for yards allowed could head in its first game under new leadership. Sure enough, it went up, but just how much it jumped is difficult to decipher.

On one hand, interim coordinator Joe Rossi's unit allowed 494 total yards - as the record predictably fell - and did not force a turnover, though Rutgers did recover a fumble on Rossi-coached special teams. On the other, it limited Notre Dame to field goals on three drives inside the 10-yard line and kept the deficit manageable until the ...